Safety grip for bathtubs



Aug. 14, 1934. F. T. ALDER SAFETY GRIP FOR BATHTUBS Filed Jan. 15

Patented Aug. I4, 1934 SAFETY GRIP FOR BATHTUBS Frederick T. Alder, Mount Vernon, N. Y.; Rose Alder,

trix of said Frederick T.

Alder, deceased, assigner to Walter H. Rudolph,

New York, N. Y.

Application January 13, 1933, Serial No. 651,478

4 Claims.

The object of this invention is to provide a safety grip which may readily be attached to and removed from bath tubs, and in such a way that the grip is readily adjustable to different posi- 5 tions to suit the user of the tub.

It is well known that a large part of accidental injuries to individuals occur from slipping in a bath tub, and that a very considerable part of those injuries occur in turn when getting out of the tub because of hands slipping on the edge of the tub. 'I'his invention is to prevent accidents of the latter type by providing' a grip ,which can be put in place anywhere `along either or both edges of a tub and which is so constructed that wet hands will not slip on it nor will it slip on the edge of the tub when 'gripped by the hand.

With the foregoing and other and incidental objects in view, the invention consists in a novel o construction and arrangement of parts and materials, a preferred form of embodiment of which is illustrated in the drawing accompanying and forming a part of this specification, the novel features of the invention being pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 shows one of the devices in place on theedge of a bath tub.

Fig. 2 is a perspective of a preferred form of the device, with part of the exterior broken away to show the particular metal element employed in that form.

Fig. 3 is a section through the device, with the edge of a tub represented in broken lines, to show how the device may be applied to a tub.

Stated in a general way, the invention contemplates a safety grip which is so constructed that it will clamp the edge of a tub firmly enough to hold it in place, with faces of rubber or other suitable material to contact the tub surface and to be engaged by the hand when getting out of the tub.- Either or both surfaces may be corrugated or Toughened in any desired way to increase the non-slipping effect. Preferably the 5 clamping effect is obtained by a metal insert which is resilient or springy, but which can nevertheless be deformed to make it easy to fit the grip to tub edges of various sizes and shapes. It is apparent, however, that the insert might be springy material which cannot -readily be deformed, although this would necessitate making the grips in different sizes and shapes to accommodate them to different tub edge constructions. The form of the invention shown in the draw- (Cl. 4-185l ing includes a metal sheet l0 which has a certain amount of springiness or resiliency, but which can nevertheless be bent or formed by the hands to shape it so as to hold the grip firmly on the tub. While it is preferred to have the device given the form shown in the drawing when completed for shipment, making the sheet 10 of metal which is deformable and at the same time resilient makes it possible to send the device out in flat condition, thereby cutting down the cost of packaging and shipping; butthis would make it necessary for the purchaser to shape 'the device by hand and that would not be so satisfactory.

The metal 10 may be a continuous or imperforate sheet, or it may be constructed otherwise so long as the desired characteristics are present in it.

The sheet l0 is covered with rubber or any similar satisfactory material, and it is preferred to have a considerable margin of the material extending beyond the edges of the sheet l0 as shown at 11. This might be accomplished by vulcanizing the metal sheet in the rubber by using suitable molds, but it is preferred to use two sheets of rubber 12 and 13 and cement them to the metal.

one on the outside and the other on the inside of the metal, with the contacting faces of the sheets around the edges of the metal also cemented together. The way of assembling the various members and fastening them together may be varied, as all that is necessary, in the best practice, is to hold the members in relative position and, preferably in such a way "that the metal will be protected from moisture.

'Ihe exterior and the interior surfaces of the grip may either or both be given any desired nonskid or ornamental pattern. In the drawing the exterior surface is corrugated longitudinally as shown at 14 and the interior or tub gripping surface has circumferentially extending ribs or corrugations 15.

In Fig. 3 the device is shown as first applied to the edge of one type of bath tub. It will be held in place satisfactorily, and, even though the metal is non-deformable, will serve quite well the intended purpose. If the metal is deformable the device can be shaped, if desired, so as to cause a larger part of the interior surface to contact the surfaces of the tub edge.

While the device has been described in considerable detail, it is not the desire to be limited by the description or the details specified except as such limitations may appear in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A safety grip to be applied to the edge of a bath tub comprising a rubber body constructed to provide a plurality of non-skid elements to engage surfaces at the tub edge, and a plurality of non-skid elements to be engaged by the hand of the user, and means within said body adjustable to nt the grip to diierent kinds of tub edges.

2. A removable safety .grip for the edge of a bath tub comprising a portion constructed to provide non-skid elements to engage surfaces at the tub edge, a portion constructed to provide non-skid elements to be engaged by the hand of the user, and an easily deformable resilient member between said portions for holding the irstmentioned non-skid elements in contact with the surfaces at the tub edge.

3. A removable safety grip for the edge of a bath tub comprising a portion constructed to provide a plurality of interior non-skid elements to engage surfaces at the tub edge, a portion constructed to provide a plurality of exterior nonskid elements to be engaged by the hand of the user, and a member between said portions which is deformable to nt the grip to the tub edge and resilient to hold the interior non-skid elements in contactw'lth the tub surfaces.

4. A safety grip for the edge of a bath tub comprising two sheets of corrugated rubber, an easily deformable resilient member between said sheets, the sheets and saidmember being cemented together with the corrugated faces of the sheets outward and with the edges of the sheets cemented together around the edge of said member.

"l, FREDERICK T. ALDER. 

